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Teacher and ADTA site rep warns district may be losing computer-science CTE pathway
Summary
David Donati, a history teacher and Atascadero District Teachers Association site representative, told trustees he believes district staffing moves are threatening the high school computer science pathway and urged the board to investigate.
David Donati, a history teacher and site representative for the Atascadero District Teachers Association (ADTA), told the board he is concerned the district may be "killing" the computer science career-technical education (CTE) pathway by not retaining a long-serving, reportedly well-regarded computer science instructor.
Donati told trustees that computer-science jobs are in demand statewide and that the district should preserve opportunities for students to progress from elementary robotics and middle-school engineering into high-school computer science. He said the district’s reported plan to let the most-qualified computer-science teacher go would reduce students’ pathways and urged the board to investigate and clarify staffing decisions.
Donati cited state labor-market context from the California Department of Education and referenced Assembly Bill 2097, a legislative proposal discussed in the transcript as a possible future graduation requirement for computer science. He said local offerings in robotics and engineering at lower grades require a high-school pathway to sustain student progression.
The speaker named Mr. Spiller and Mr. Rossi as prior program reviewers or administrators in passing but did not provide the name of the teacher the district is planning to release. Donati said the teacher had positive performance reviews and had expanded the program’s course offerings at the high school; he asked trustees to look into the staffing decision and the potential program impact.
Superintendent Tom Butler responded to public speakers generally and said staff would be in touch with commenters. The transcript records no formal board action during public comment; the board did not vote on staffing at the meeting.
Because the transcript does not identify the teacher who may be leaving or provide the district's stated rationale, this article notes the allegation and the request for investigation but does not attribute reasons for the staffing decision.
